Opinion : Why can’t we choose our ‘law and order provider’?

Do you think crime is getting out of control in our town?

All too often there are burglaries, thefts, traffic offences and other crimes committed in High Wycombe yet only a fraction of those who perpetrate the crimes are arrested let alone prosecuted.

Of course if you are unlucky enough to be a victim of crime then a call to the police is necessary. However there is only one police force covering our area.

A short while ago my good self was reading a national news site when I happened to come across an article headlined ‘Private security firm mounts UK’s first private prosecutions for theft as police refuse to take offenders to court‘.

After reading the aforementioned article it appears that a private police service is mounting the first private prosecutions in the United Kingdom for thefts and what are classified as other ‘minor’ crimes.

The ‘My Local Bobby’ service, which was launched just over two years ago, is run by former senior Metropolitan police officers to provide residents, local firms and shops with neighbourhood policing more reminiscent, it says, of ‘Dixon of Dock Green’.

However yours truly is not sure the ‘Dixon of Dock Green’ style of law enforcement would be very effective in modern day High Wycombe, surely our town needs policing more reminiscent of that provided by ‘Jack Regan of The Sweeney’?

Apparently the private police force has thirty uniformed ‘bobbies’ who wear red vests and caps when on duty. They provide 24/7 cover for up to 250 houses on each beat with a response at the scene within five minutes. The monthly fee per household for the service ranges from £100 to £200.

In my opinion it’s about time we could choose our ‘law and order provider’ just as we can choose the suppliers of our other essential services like electricity, telephones, gas and the like. Sadly when it comes to law enforcement there is just one ‘supplier of law and order services’ in each area of the country.

After all if one ‘supplier’ has a monopoly on anything then complacency can creep in leading to a reduction in performance.

In my opinion a change to the way ‘law and order services’ are provided is exactly what the United Kingdom needs in the modern post-Brexit world.

Let’s see law and order services deregulated so we can choose the best service provider rather than having to rely on just one state controlled provider.

So what do you think? Should the country’s law and order services be opened up to competition to ensure the public get value for money?

What do you think?

My blogs are published regularly here on the WycombeToday.com website.

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